Some fans of "Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi" are striking below the belt, as racist, sexist, and downright insulting gestures are being directed at an Asian actress of the said movie.
Kelly Marie Tran, who plays Rose Tico in the said sequel for "Star Wars," is currently experiencing the toxic side of the online community for the franchise. Her Wookiepedia ("Star Wars" wiki) page, has been defaced by racist and sexist slurs, and what is supposed to be information regarding her character was replaced by childish racial insults, which even made fun of several mental disorders.
The page now reads "Ching Chong Ting Wong is a dumb*ss f*cking character Disney made and is a stupid, autistic, and retarded love interest for Finn. She better die in a coma because she is a dumb*ss b*tch." At the same time, an indirect racist slur has also been directed towards Finn (John Boyega) where a movie quote from Rose to Finn was replaced with "Heil Hitler and I don't know why I was casted in a good movie like 'Star Wars,'" due to Finn being a black character.
Apart from those, the character's biography was also vandalized, where her homeworld was changed to Ching Chong China, despite the actress, Tran being Vietnamese. Wookiepedia has since closed the page from editing and has taken down the racist and sexist insults with an accompanying apologetic tweet praising Tran for being a part of the franchise. The person who also committed the said edits has been banned from the wiki page.
Fans have also defended Tran even citing notions such as white fragility, and others have called out fans on being unfair since they apparently only hate Rose and are taking it out on Tran. While it is fair to dislike the character, attacking the actress is not a good way of showing criticism or being constructive about it since.
On a final note, fans of "Star Wars" would also do well to remember that the movie franchise, ever since it began on 1977, has always been about a group of people from all walks of life rebelling against a tyrannical order. This means that one of the core messages of "Star Wars" is to set aside racial diversity for a noble goal.
